Chapter 37
After safely finishing their first visit, the group began searching for a place to stay.
“It took us less than a week to clear the first ten floors… That’s faster than expected, but normally people still clear the Dark Swamp within two weeks at most.”
Two weeks to clear ten floors.
That could be considered the average time required for the first section.
But that only applied to the first section.
Beginning with the eleventh floor, the second section was completely different.
“Even this eleventh floor, which is considered relatively easy, can’t be cleared in a day or two. We’ll probably need to spend at least a week here. Just figuring out how to clear it won’t be easy.”
“We also need to search for Remains. It would be good to obtain any necessary items while we’re here.”
“Well, don’t worry too much. There are many different kinds of terrain in the Dungeon, but city type floors like this are the easiest places to establish a base.”
They followed the river for around twenty kilometers after leaving the museum.
A long fence divided the inner and outer city.
The unnaturally organized scenery of the standardized city disappeared the moment they crossed beyond the fence.
Old gray stone buildings stood irregularly throughout the area.
Around thirty percent had collapsed badly enough that no one could live inside them.
The humans they had occasionally seen before had almost completely disappeared.
Their only companions were sewer rats and the cats hunting those rats.
The expedition spent several hours searching the outer city.
The place was filled with dusty earth and the unpleasant smell of sewage.
Seven hours after leaving the museum, they entered a district controlled by a self proclaimed sheriff named Jack.
His defining feature was his obesity.
It was almost difficult to believe that a human living inside the Dungeon, where obtaining proper nutrition was so difficult, could become that large.
“Ohhh… So these are cigarettes from the outside? What a simple construction. How do I use one? Do I light this end?”
“We can talk about that inside. You’ve got at least one empty building we can use, right?”
“We have more than enough empty buildings around here. How many floors would you like?”
“Six.”
“…Wait here. I’ll be back soon.”
The self proclaimed sheriff walked deeper into the district with a huge smile.
Only then did Dexter clap his hands as if he finally understood.
“So that’s what all the alcohol and cigarettes were for?”
“We originally should have used them while crossing the Dark Forest too. We lost most of them in the Black Magic Cult village.”
“……”
The moment the village was mentioned, everyone’s expressions darkened.
Perhaps they remembered what had happened there.
They had known from the moment they decided to enter the Dungeon that they would experience terrible things.
But none of them had expected to receive so many shocks in such a short time.
Perhaps they were mourning the dead.
Perhaps they were simply silent because they wanted to forget those horrifying events.
Either way, everyone stopped speaking.
Unable to endure the atmosphere any longer, Dexter tried changing the subject.
“Still, it’s surprising that a city this large doesn’t even have a proper supply of cigarettes.”
Danforth glanced back toward the inner city, now quite far away.
He curled his lips slightly.
“Most places in this world look impressive on the outside, but they’re empty shells.”
He did not have extensive experience in the world below either.
However, senior raiders had repeatedly told him that this kind of environment continued throughout most of the Dungeon.
“…Why is that? With the Authorities of the Inner Gods, they should be able to create a much better world.”
“That’s according to our standards. You think the Great Old Ones would build a world based on what mortals like us want? They probably think this is more than enough.”
“……”
“No, they might even think this is better. They’re the kind of beings who feel pleasure the more we suffer. Tch.”
At Danforth’s complaint, Yohan looked toward his shoulder.
The goddess was lying there.
She still seemed deeply asleep.
Drool flowed from her mouth as she breathed softly.
Looking at Dexter’s bitter expression, Yohan added a few words.
“Even so, this place is relatively good. On floors where even magic beasts are difficult to obtain, food itself replaces currency.”
“Ah…”
“Basic food comes first. Luxury goods like alcohol and cigarettes come second. Valuable objects like gems and gold come third. Whenever possible, you should always keep supplies from those three categories.”
“Ohhh, I understand!”
“Of course, that only applies to mortals like you.”
“……”
Around the time the conversation naturally ended, the self proclaimed Sheriff Jack returned.
He was panting heavily.
Sweat poured down his entire face.
After struggling to catch his breath, he spoke.
“…Everything’s ready. Let’s go. Some magic beasts might appear on the way, so I’ll need you to deal with them if they do.”
“……”
This place only had the shape of a city.
It lacked both the manpower and the systems needed to function like a real one.
Because of that, it was easy to take advantage of its weaknesses.
The masters of the Dungeon were the Inner Gods.
Each floor also had a separate deity managing its territory.
However, their interest usually stopped there.
The rest was normally left to their believers and the Apostles serving as their hands and feet.
On the eleventh floor, their main base was limited to the area around the museum.
The farther one moved from the museum, the harder it became to find believers, or even intelligent lifeforms.
Naturally, the number of magic beasts and other monsters increased.
But powerful beasts capable of completely destroying buildings were still uncommon.
A six story building could be considered relatively safe.
That was exactly why Yohan and Danforth chose to establish a base here.
It was also why they had bribed the self proclaimed Sheriff Jack with cigarettes and received his promise to provide them with a place.
A space outside the deity’s main range of influence.
A place where they could reasonably respond to magic beast attacks.
That was enough.
They rented an entire old six story stone building.
